After a week in Antigua, we took a short shuttle bus to Lago Atitlán - lake Atitlán, where we planned to spend Christmas and new year. Lago Atitlán is a volcanic lake 18km long, 6km wide and 325m deep. The lake sits at an altitude of 1500m, and the locals say the climate is ‘eternal spring,’ because it’s always a sunny 25 degrees every day. There are 11 towns around the lake, and each is different with it’s own culture and personality. Lots of the towns are only accessible by boat, and don’t have any road acesss to them. We decided to stay in a few different towns during our time at the lake. Panajachel : We arrived from Antigua to our first lake-side destination for a few nights: Panajachel. We had a good view of lake here, and enjoyed sitting by the lake and watching the locals swim (the water here was a bit too dirty for us to venture in!). We spent our time here wondering the colourful streets, looking at the handicrafts and locally made goods, and eating at some lovely ...
The Guajira desert is a remote, vast, and wild region located in Northern Colombia snd stretching across the border into Venezuela. It is the largest desert in South America north of the equator, and it’s surrounded by the sea on the northern side. It is home to the indigenous Wayuu people, who own and live on the land. The most Northerly point of South America lies deep in the Guajira desert - Punta Gallinas. There are no roads, and lots of the desert is difficult to access. There is no electricity or running water, and accommodations are basic. Biking in the desert is tricky as you need to hike across sand, and across land owned by Wayuu people who often put up road blocks to take payment for access. As the region is so remote and the local people very poor, they prefer payment with food or water to cross the road blocks. Historically it has been dangerous for tourists to enter the desert, and whilst it is now safer, robberies are still common. Given this, and the di...
With our bikes, accessories and gear all ready to go, and having done a few test rides around Medellin, it was time for us to leave the city and start our motorbike adventure around Colombia! Our general plan was to head north to the Caribbean coast from Medellin, to make the most of the beaches during the end of the dry season, before the rainy season fully starts. Comienza el gran viaje! Day 1 - Medellin to Liborina. We had a short distance of 85km for our first day, riding out of the city and into the mountains. We stopped at the lovely towns of San Jerónimo and Sucre on the way for coffees and a stretch. We made it to our hostel in Liborina early afternoon, and we enjoyed the mountain views, and the hostel swimming pool and hot tub - not a bad way to start our trip! En route to Necocli: After a good first day and night, we had an early start to make a detour to visit the wooden suspension bridge at Santa Fe de Antioquia. The bridge was built in the 19th cent...
Have a fab time x
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